Curried Rice with Chickpeas...a complete protein.

I sure am getting my money's rental time's worth of How to Cook Everything Vegetarian! My copy is coming due in a day or so at the library and I don't want to give it back. Another one for the purchase pile. The other night I was looking for something to make with things I already had in the pantry/fridge (yup, one of those days again). I'm always so excited when I find something that we love and file away in our mental checklist of things to make again. This dish contains chickpeas and rice, which together make a complete protein...and with the addition of coconut milk and curry powder, they had so much addicting flavor! I used brown rice, which essentially doubled the cooking time but that's okay...and I threw in some fried tofu, one of my current favorite things!

Curried Rice with Chickpeas
from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman
serves 4

Put oil in a medium pot with a lid over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion, garlic, bell pepper and curry powder, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, coconut milk, bay leaf , some salt and plenty of pepper; bring to a boil.

Stir in the rice and chickpeas, cover and turn the heat down to low so that the mixture bubbles gently. Cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork, taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

*If using brown rice, I recommend starting with water and after the first 30 minutes, stirring in the coconut milk. This will allow the rice to cook about 2/3 of the way before adding the coconut milk which can burn onto bottom of pan during longer cooking time, which was a total of about 45 minutes.
I'm submitting this at IHCC this week for our POTLUCK! theme...why not join us this week...nothin' but Bittman :) I'm also submitting this to Meatless Mondays over at My Sweet and Savory hosted by Chaya.

Michiana-based food writer with a fondness for garlic, freshly baked bread, stinky cheese, dark beer, and Mexican food—who believes that immersing herself in different cultures one bite at a time is the best path to enlightenment.

hmmm...I wonder why I don't go to the library for cookbooks. I need to start doing that. Seriously.I love brown rice. It has flavor! (unlike white rice...sir sportsalots choice of rice). I wonder if the ban on cooking with curry has been lifted (read: forgotten) by the other household members. Apparently they have something against the house smelling like curry for 2 days. (they are sooooo weird!)(verification word: raforbum. I know what a bum is...(british for a$$) but what the hell is a rafor?) sorry...it's been a long day and the wine is kicking in..woo hoo

Dani...LOL, not sure...but yeah...you should see me when I leave the library...books (cookbooks & other) teetering precariously in my arms. HA!! That way you can preview them before you buy them. Course, I'm always renewing the ones I love on everybody in the whole households cards before I return them!! :D

Thanks for the tips on using brown rice, I always have trouble when using it instead of white rice in these types of recipes. Will definitely try and compare to mine: http://www.cookeatdelicious.com/grains-recipes/rice-recipes/curried-rice-chickpeas-recipe.html

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